This is NOT a Plastic Bag 2018

Orchard Park Elementary School Green Cubs

The Orchard Park Elementary School Green Cubs designed, distributed, and promoted reusable shopping bags to the entire school community. Attached to the reusable bags were fact sheets about why it is important to use the bags instead of using disposable ones. The project included daily announcements and a contest to see which classrooms could use reusable bags most often.

The Orchard Park Elementary (OPE) Green Cubs are a group of students who want to learn about and create awareness of environmental problems and offer ways for the community to lessen its impact. The students learned that it was important to stop using single-use plastic bags, even if you try recycle them afterwards. They learned that is it takes a lot resources to make, use, and recycle a product. They also learned that it is hard and costs a lot for a factory to recycle plastic bags. It is better to just say NO to plastic bags in the first place.

As an incentive to get their school community used to using the reusable bags they were provided, the students held a contest to challenge their classmates and OPE staff to see which classrooms could use the reusable bags most often. Each classroom was giving a tracking sheet, and they tallied the number of REUSABLE bags used at home every day.

In addition to handing out the bags and running the Green Bag Challenge, the OPE Green Cubs held daily morning announcements giving facts about the 3 R's and the impact that plastic bag use has on the environment and wild life.

According to the US EPA, Americans use more than 380 billion plastic bags and wraps each year. It takes 12 million barrels of oil to produce this many bags. Worldwide, as many as one trillion plastic bags are used each year. This equates to 100 million barrels of oil! Sadly, only 1-5% of plastic bags are recycled each year, and the rest take HUNDREDS of years to breakdown in the landfill or in nature. We have all witnessed plastic bags blowing around in our communities, getting caught in trees, or finding their ways into rivers and oceans.

The OPE Green Cubs thanked everyone for participating in the Green Bag Challenge and acknowledged the winning classrooms during the morning announcements. Students in the winning classrooms were rewarded with do-it-yourself recycled craft projects such as book marks from cereal boxes and CD spinning tops.

The Green Cubs educated their entire school community. Click on the image above to enlarge it. Find out more about the effect of plastic bags on wildlife and nature, click here.

Take a few minutes to watch this cartoon explaining why we all should limit the number of single use plastic bags we use. While it is next to impossible to stop using plastic bags entirely, please know that plastic bags and films CANNOT be placed in curbside recycling bins in Carmel or in most communities. Instead, they must be separated and taken to a supermarket or home improvement store to be dropped off for recycling. Visit PlasticFilmRecycling.org to find a drop off location near you. All bags and plastic film must be clean, dry, and free of any paper labels or food residue. Of course, using reusable bags whenever possible is best.